Chapter 7 - Meeting with Prince Atord

Maple had decided to disassociate himself from Oak and his band the day before. He and his soldiers headed for the ancient capital of St. Cedar, the heart of the province of Douronia. The military march cut through forests, clearings, and plains at a terrifying speed. No one could stop him from fulfilling his duty and reaching the prince.

As dawn broke, the group finally saw the city on the banks of the Douro River. This was the oldest city of the Arbolarbres and dated back to the time of the Herbae Hominem. It was near the Douro River, in the middle of the night of the Poussé that King Herbacum had shared his sap with Saint Dalbergia. It was there that the water magic had originated. 

The river flowed through the city and was used to irrigate the various surrounding farms. Its waters were blessed and contained essential minerals as well as marble, favoring the development of a strong agricultural and metallurgical industry in the city.

The red and blue brick houses as well as the numerous forges shone with a thousand lights, rocked by the soft glow of the rising sun.

But they all paled in comparison to the majesty of the royal palace, which had been built more than a thousand years ago by King Herbacum.

The palace of pure white marble stood above the city, on a hill of green grass and blinded anyone who looked at it. Many pilgrims came every day to bathe in the sacred waters of the Douro River and beg the grace of the royal family and the head of the clergy, Jimmy Acajou. Jimmy had taken refuge in the city to avoid King Xidor’s henchmen and to take advantage of the sacred water’s healing powers.

They climbed the palace hill to reach the brown oak bridge, a suspension bridge that overlooked the city’s black stone streets as well as the river. A handful of guards stood at each end of the bridge, ensuring the safety of the place and of the prince. They made sure that no armed individual crossed it. The palace was sacrosanct, and spilling blood there meant life imprisonment. Maple and his soldiers arrived at the bridge, the river’s salty air flooding their nostrils just like the smell of jasmine coming from the palace.

"Declare yourself and give us your weapons" obliged one of the guards, dressed in the scarlet outfit streaked with purple typical of the guard.

Maple puffed up his chest and said firmly. "I’m Captain Maple. I’m your superior and I order you to let us pass."

The guard bowed and waved him across the bridge. "Ah Captain! The prince is waiting for you in the courtyard. He is playing darts. Peace makes him idle".

Maple and his men marched across the bridge and into the palace courtyard.

A myriad of scarecrows with apple-shaped heads and bodies, made to resemble the Applers, littered the rectangular, grassy courtyard. They served as training targets for a dozen soldiers; some of them hit the targets with wooden swords. Others shot flaming arrows at them. The scarecrows’ rags sometimes caught fire and spread a smell of smoke that mixed with the smell of sweat.

Maple walked towards the soldiers. He plugged his nose with his hand. "Put on some perfume, it's unbearable. I can't even breathe.”

A massive tree-man with  deep blue eyes and golden armor stopped hitting a scarecrow.

He approached Maple and replied with a smile. "Ah, Captain Maple, I've been expecting you. Don't pay much attention to that smell. It's the smell of men preparing for war. The training of our troops is of the utmost importance even though the specter of war has long since disappeared."

Maple's face took on a serious expression. "I'm not so sure about that, your brother...".

Maple saw the Prince's smile fade through the visor of the prince’s helmet. "You're right... He could lead us into war, he's a carnivore and he's not trustworthy. He's a usurper who seduced and fooled my father on his deathbed. He even convinced Jimmy Acajou for a moment. Him on the throne? A joke. Me on the throne? The right state of affairs

Maple nodded and looked at his soldiers who had begun practicing on the scarecrows. "Oh yes, you are the worthy monarch of this kingdom, Xidor doesn’t deserve his throne, he’s not a real man... He’s not like you and my soldiers. We must stop him."

"Oh yes, we must."

Prince Atord motioned for Maple to follow him to a far corner of the grounds where stood a beautiful corm tree filled with pear-like fruits "Follow me, We can never be too sure."

Maple nodded and they moved onto the grass. They sat down under the tree that stood close to a palace’s wall The wind had picked up and the cool morning breeze was blowing the corm tree’s leaves. Corms fell from time to time at their feet and were eaten by small birds such as the bluebird and the wren.

Despite their common ancestry and their common characteristics with avians, these birds laid eggs and couldn’t speak, unlike avians who were mammals endowed with speech.

These birds loved the astringent, grainy taste of the fruit and chirped with pleasure. Their calls and the rustling of the leaves masked the sound of the two companions' words.

Still, Maple began to speak in a low voice. "Your brother even poisons the heads of people who should curse him. He tortured the Quercus family for many years with unjust taxes and imprisoned them when they made the slightest refusal to pay. Now Oak Quercus believes the king deserves forgiveness and wants to re-educate him."

Prince Atord laughed loudly; his laughter could be heard throughout the court. "Hahaha, getting jailed for not paying taxes is the best joke I’ve ever heard. Peasants are lazy monkeys. One year without any Poussé season and they can't bring a decent harvest. I shouldn't have sent you to save that bum. Especially since the assassination attempt planned by his father failed."

.... He still says that? He hasn't changed his mind since the last time... Still, peasants are real men. Without them, the warriors would starve... Well... I'd better keep my mouth shut; I must stay in his good graces.

Prince Atord's smile faded and he lowered his voice.

"Oak even sent me a letter saying that he would oppose my brother, but through other means. He emphasized his desire for peace and strongly urged me not to try to stop him in his plans. I save his life and this is how he thanks me?

Maple said with absolute confidence. "Yes, he’s not a real man... He wants to forgive Xidor, yet a real man does everything to protect the weak." He approached a bluebird and stroked it with his fingers made of light brown maple bark. "Especially, beautiful little bird like this, come over here."

The bluebird landed on his finger and looked at him with eyes that reflected the innocence of a young child*Cui, Cui*

Prince Atord waved his hands in all directions, carried by emotion. He shouted. "Oh yes, He’s following an ill-founded quest for forgiveness! As I've always said, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Follow the devil? Never!"

Maple let the bird fly away and knelt down in front of Atord. "So what do we do, to stop this devil-blinded lunatic? I await your orders."

Prince Atord took his sword and stuck it firmly into the grass. He gave Maple a fierce look, like that of a rabid tiger. "Take this sword and hunt down that hell monkey. Bring him to me. I want to question him. Venture into the depths of hell if you must. I’ll guide him to the path of justice and paradise.” He praised the divine planet tree. “God didn’t send me to his child Anthor for nothing. I’ll save the nation before Xidor plunges us into the horrors of war. Skyhigh and the animal kingdoms must survive, or our efforts of conversion will be in vain."

"Precisely... How are the conversion efforts of Jimmy Acajou's spies coming along?" wondered Maple.

"Oh, they managed to get some of Xidor's men back on track. A man in Xidor's inner circle reported to us that he started falsifying documents... probably to provoke a war with an animal kingdom."

"Wouldn't it be better to stop Xidor instead of Oak?" wondered Maple.

"We’ll stop them both. I plan to get rid of Xidor and Evergreen with my assassins. Karel is no longer here to protect them and the Indomitable has just returned from Farizia." replied Atord.

Maple stood up, picked up the sword, and hung it on his belt. "Very well, I have no worries if the Indomitable takes care of it.”

Maple, out of respect, stared at the king's chin and spoke. "Will I get a promotion if I do everything you ask? I'm getting tired of being at the front with the constant moving around. I see myself in the big tent with you and the generals, leading the soldiers to certain victory."

Taken by surprise, Prince Atord laughed an embarrassed laugh. "Huhuhu, Oh you catch me off guard, Captain. We never talked about that. Why are you hot for a post far from the frontlines? I perceive something else than a simple taste for strategy.”

"My life vision..."

Prince Atord stood up and picked up a corm. A small sparrow with white and fluffy plumage came to rest in his hand. "Ah, the famous vision. Every man must have a vision. But am I that vision?" As I have always said, I’m a beacon to the nation; men love me, animals love me."

Maple looked at Prince Atord's hand where the sparrow was. "With all due respect, no. I’m thinking of winning a woman's heart and becoming a father. Life at the front is hardly suitable for successful family life. I’ve already lost a woman's heart and a part of mine as well. Never again..."

Prince Atord put his hand on Maple's shoulder to reassure him. The icy touch of the golden glove made him shiver. "Interesting. As I've always said, the mightiest warriors are sometimes paper tigers in front of womankind. A promotion? You'll get it in due time. Fulfill my vision? I'll get it in due time. The time and place of my success will coincide with yours."

Maple stood up and walked to the center of the field where the soldiers were training. "Your wish will be granted, my prince, but my men must rest from their long journey. Entrust me with a handful of your best soldiers, fit and fresh, and I’ll leave at once to fulfill your vision."

Prince Atord followed him to the center of the field. "Cherry unit, you'll part with Maple to find Oak."

A dozen soldiers dressed in royal garb stopped hitting the scarecrows and replied. "Your desires are ours."

"You may leave now, Captain Maple."

Captain Maple bowed one last time to Prince Atord. "Thank you, my king."

Maple crossed the bridge again and headed north, towards Bouleauville. 

Which would lead him to a place where he had never set foot before... Skyhigh.